I’ve worked as a journalist in new media, print, television news and documentary film, and have written and reported extensively about travel and road safety, as well as job trends, small business, personal spending, education, human interest topics, environmental and social issues, and the arts. I’ve contributed to many publications and news organizations, including The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, NBCNews.com, BBC.com, AOL, ABC News, PBS, HBO and CNBC. For Forbes.com I write about transportation and consumer travel issues. I live in the Metro New York area. Join me on Twitter @tanya_mohn.

New Guide To Passenger Rights Aims To Help Air Travelers Navigate The Skies

When flights are seriously delayed, rescheduled or canceled, travelers are often uncertain about when and if they can request money back or ask for a hotel room for the night.

“Some airlines will provide hotels if there are delays, and almost all will give money back if flights are severely delayed. A lot of people don’t know that,” said George Hobica, founder and president of Airfarewatchdog.com.

“Most airlines make their contracts of carriage and customer service commitments either hard to find, or hard to understand,” Hobica said. “I think most people don’t know or understand what is in them,” as the language, often is hard to decipher legal jargon, can be confusing.

Hobica said to his knowledge, this is the first time that detailed, airline-specific policies from major carriers have been compiled in one place, for easy, comprehensive access. (The new guide details policies for domestic flights only.) “This synopsis puts key information in consumers’ hands. And it shows that not all airlines have the same policies,” he said.

“Alaska Airlines seem to have put the customer first. It probably has the best customer service,” Hobica said, noting that the carrier has a policy “stating that in the event of a delay or cancellation they’ll put you on another airline at no extra charge if that airline will get you where you’re going faster than the next Alaska Airlines flight.”

“Spirit AirlinesSpirit Airlines may have the worst customer service,” he said, and United Airlines “is pretty good.” The carrier, “still says in its contract that they’ll put you on another airline to get you where you’re going if there’s no alternative service on United.”

Hobica said air travelers have enjoyed greater protections in recent years as a result of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) tightened regulations governing how airlines handle issues like tarmac delays, lost luggage and being bumped from flights. But “there are really no protections for other kinds of delays” under federal rules in the United States though “in Europe there are,” he said, explaining that the DOT rule pertains to tarmac delays lasting three hours or more. Should that occur, passengers must be able to deplane if they wish.

Many customer service concerns are left up to individual carriers, he said.

Hobica said consumers can still ask for a hotel for the night or request to be put on the next flight out on another airline even if the carrier they originally booked a seat on does not have a strong policy. “Be prepared to ask” he said.

“People just wait, and wait, and wait for the airlines to respond, but customers should always know what the next flight out of their destination is,” Hobica said.

That philosophy worked for him. Once a flight he was booked on in coach from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Newark was seriously delayed; the only seat available on the next flight out was in first class on another airline. The airline employee, he recalled, did not offer the first class seat to him, but when he explained that the carrier’s contact required that he be put on the next available flight, regardless of class, “she did it.”

Ideally, he said, passengers should familiarize themselves with airlines’ service policies before flying and suggests that they download the new guide for easy access on their smart phones or iPads, or carry a printed hard copy “because a lot of airline employees may not be familiar with their own airline’s rules.”

“If you have the facts right in front of you,” Hobica said, “you will be in a much better position. Passengers armed with that information can show it to airline staff and say: ‘read this.’”

Post Your Comment

Post Your Reply

Forbes writers have the ability to call out member comments they find particularly interesting. Called-out comments are highlighted across the Forbes network. You'll be notified if your comment is called out.